A member of the Rhymesayers and helping hand in creating a great environment for hip hop fans on the Soundset stage, Brother Ali joined Tracy G for a few minutes.

Given the climate of hip hop following the fatal Troy Ave incident and the response from the NYPD commissioner trying to put a negative spin on things, he stands on the positive stories they conveniently skip over being told currently by Kendrick and Chance the Rapper. When you have the media impressing ideas of hip hop = bad, of course that is what the masses will believe. In a very similar fashion, blacks were only portrayed as slaves or inferior for a very long time due to the stories being told and who was telling them. That is one of the best things about festivals like Soundset, the artist has a chance to directly connect with fans and give them those stories firsthand.

As the 2016 election draws near, we had to get his input on Donald Trump and he summed him up pretty well “he’s a mouthpiece for the worst of what America is”. His stance on the opposite sides representatives in Hilary and Bernie were much more mild but with each comes their own set of issues.

No way Brother Ali could end with anything negative as he shouts out Sway and the platform provided to continuously push the culture forward in a positive manner, making sure the right stories get told and ensures we always put the best foot forward. That’s hip hop.

Icon of hip-hop culture and a pivotal part of the MTV News team, Sway has been a staple of the music-news arena for more than a decade. From giving Eminem, Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac their very first radio airplay on his local show in the mid-’90s to providing television viewers with their first good look at some of today’s hottest celebrities in music, film, fashion and sports. Sway has been there for some of music and the world’s biggest moments.